I understand guys can't play forever and their play declines as they age.

The bad news is that our defensive players are continuing to age and we are trying to replace them with inferior players. It's not like we haven't spent high picks on defense. It's that these high picks are not developing and performing at the level their expected. That might work when it's 1 player. You can disguise it. Right now, we are weak at multiple positions.[/QUOTE]

Weak at S sans Troy.
Weak at CB. Ike is only solid one and he is getting old.
Weak at OLB with 92 out.
Weak at DL? Maybe.
IDK, I think we are even weak at ILB; Timmons misses tackles all day long.

Are things really this bleak? They might be.

09-25-2012, 07:18 AM

papillon

[QUOTE=lloydroid;525121]We are basically a .500 team without TP in the line up. Maybe below it now.[/QUOTE]

James Harrison is the heart and soul of the defense; Troy is the play maker of the defense (by and large) without one the defense can get by, but will typically need a good effort from the offense to win, without both the offense has no room for error almost every possession needs to turn into points and that's untenable.

The defense needs both and they need them for 2 or 3 more years to be competitive and hopefully draft or develop some talent on defense. The other players seem to be playing as if Troy and James are in the game and waiting for them to make a play or cause the quarterback make a bad decision.

Pappy

09-25-2012, 07:39 AM

DukieBoy

[COLOR=#00ff00]According to Trib articles on-line this morning, our D schemes are very predictable, apparently. After running the same defense for so many years, it has become easy to read and know what the defense is doing. Palmer recognized what the defense would do, audibled to the play for the long TD run, for one example. Apparently, same with blitz packages, very easy to recognize and anticipate.[/COLOR]

09-25-2012, 07:57 AM

Oviedo

[QUOTE=DukieBoy;525220][COLOR=#00ff00]According to Trib articles on-line this morning, our D schemes are very predictable, apparently. After running the same defense for so many years, it has become easy to read and know what the defense is doing. Palmer recognized what the defense would do, audibled to the play for the long TD run, for one example. Apparently, same with blitz packages, very easy to recognize and anticipate.[/COLOR][/QUOTE]

I read that too, however for any of us who watch every game that shouldn't be a surprise. Even sitting in our living rooms we can typically predict who is going to blitz with at least a 80% accuracy for pretty much any game. I'm sure the professionals who study film can do much better.

Palmer's statement about the predictability of our blitzes goes a long way to explain why last season we had the lowest sack total in 21 years.

09-25-2012, 02:20 PM

phillyesq

Palmer called 11 audibles on 57 plays -- calling an audible on less than 20% of plays does not indicate that the entire defensive scheme is predictable.

09-25-2012, 02:32 PM

lloydroid

[QUOTE=DukieBoy;525220][COLOR=#00ff00]According to Trib articles on-line this morning, our D schemes are very predictable, apparently. After running the same defense for so many years, it has become easy to read and know what the defense is doing. Palmer recognized what the defense would do, audibled to the play for the long TD run, for one example. Apparently, same with blitz packages, very easy to recognize and anticipate.[/COLOR][/QUOTE]

Yea, and the other columnist said it has nothing to do with predictable play calling. Who is right? I don't know. I am leaning towards buying that their system and calls are predictable. Palmer did seem to know everything that was coming. I thought DL's system was so ingenious that there were always new wrinkles that threw offenses off. It doesn't appear to be so now.

09-25-2012, 02:38 PM

lloydroid

[QUOTE=phillyesq;525303]Palmer called 11 audibles on 57 plays -- calling an audible on less than 20% of plays does not indicate that the entire defensive scheme is predictable.[/QUOTE]

It also doesn't prove that it [I][U]isn't[/U][/I] predictable. What if Palmer walks up to the line and realizes that the play he called is already the right call for what he sees the D doing? Then he would just run the play as called, not needing an audible. There is nothing to indicate that he didn't know what the D was going to do. Judging by how he tore them apart in the 2nd half, I'd say he knew what was going on with the D. He looked very comfortable out there.

09-25-2012, 02:50 PM

Slapstick

My brother thought that the Raiders were possibly pulling a Patriots with a camera focused on our sidelines...Carson looked[I][B] too [/B][/I]comfortable...

09-25-2012, 04:40 PM

ikestops85

I'm not sure what you guys are getting at here. Palmer is an NFL quarterback. He will generally know what is coming. Do you think teams that play a 4-3 Tampa two defense "surprise" anyone? Hell no. Granted LeBeau's defense is supposed to confuse but their are only so many combinations and things you can do. A veteran quarterback like Palmer who has played the Steelers a lot has seen this defense many times and it's hard to confuse him.

The key thing here, and we all know it, is getting pressure on the QB. That's what LeBeau has to figure out. It's just not easy when your players aren't winning any one on one battles.

09-25-2012, 05:01 PM

lloydroid

IDK, is the days of an effective 3-4 coming to an end? With the rules as they are now, and as they are now enforced, is it possible that the 3-4 just isn't the cat's meow any longer? It probably can still be great, but ours isn't, right now. There is something about putting pressure on a QB with the front 4 that seems so effective. If you can get pressure with a dominant front 4 in a 4-3, that seems like the best of all worlds. When we end up with our OLBs having to face a legit NFL OT, it just doesn't work. A 320 lb OT laughs at a 250 lb LB trying to get by him. The only time it seems effective is when a play calls for a RB or TE to block our OLBs. But how can you create that match up if the offense doesn't give it to you?